A couple of days back,i struck a very interesting conversation with one of my buddies.The conversation initially was very casual,it all started out with the dicsussion on bombs-a hot topic these days,then it diverted to the technical aspects of bomb,World Wars,Openheimer,his role in WW-2,Einstein's Relativity theorems,the complete world of Physics,its relation with Mathematics...In a nutshell,it all started with bombs,and stopped at Pure Sciences and Arts.And that conversation triggered my thought process..and i wondered-"Where have the Einsteins and the Picassos of the world disappeared!? Or are they overshadowed by the sudden surge of a herd of the so called "Engineers and "Doctors" of the world???"
When i was a girl of 8 or 9,i wanted to be an astranaut (I still have a penchant for that fantasy,((i called it an "Ambition" then)i call it a "Fantasy" now for a very obvious reason) This article wont be whirling around my dreams and ambitions though :),and no,not even about Physics for that matter!! I just want to focus on the future of Arts and Pure Sciences.
Today,the chances of finding a person pursuing graduation in Arts or Science i must say is one in 100!!Wherever i go,i find Engineers-be it my neighbour next door,or my maid's son,engineers rule the roost!And if you supposedly find someone,who doesn't fit the frame,who talks of his future in Arts,literature or Pure Sciences you cant help but act skeptical about his intentions! You tend to put on an uppity expression on your face which says-"Excuse me,i din't hear you Sir!!....So you din't get an Engineering seat anywhere? Oh,that's so sad indeed!" You would be trying your best to console the poor soul,when he confronts you with a candid yet confident statement-"No Sir,i chose this stream,i dint want to be an Engineer!!Its that simple!!" "What??!!,Surely you are joking Mister!!,You just cant play around with your future like that!!? Could you??"
Its so conspicuous that we tend to look down upon other professions,the trend now being that you either need to be an Engineer or a Doctor to draw attention in a crowd. And if you try to be different from the rest,you would probably be inviting suspicions and cynicism about your capabilities.Its like,if you score well,you are intelligent,moreso if you get an Engineer's job! If not,then you must not be that classy afterall,or else how would you end up doing your Bachelors in Arts or Science when your peers are storming ahead of you??!! It seems as though there cant be any better reason for you to opt for something offbeat! I am not blaming the society here,since the society is nothing but a bunch of people that includes me too! I am simply trying to understand how we ended up in this soup! Why is this trend so captivating? One of the reasons could be monetary! You get paid for your efforts at the end of the day.You are sure to reap benefits from this profession. But a profession,say for example-Music,Sports or Literature assures you no guarantee of returns. Its purely your talent tempered with some luck that would fetch you accolades and popularity. Only one in a million hit gold! So most of the times we are being apprehensive of the risks involved and we play safe!! Neither everybody would have the earth shattering talents of the likes of Einstein or Tolstoy nor the daredevilness to try and experiment with thier careers!
But are we overlooking something here... Would our current professions give us anything more than what our friends in other fields boast of having? The ultimate satisfaction that one can derive is when one does what one is best at!
I don't know how good an author i would have made,but surely i regret of not having studied literature...Instead i chose to be an Engineer like the rest,one among the lot!!
Now what can i call this article? Self Mockery or somethin? :D
just aweasome!!
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Girish K